The Steelers were missing two of their offensive and special teams role players Thursday night in Cleveland, and will for the weeks to come. And then the in-game injuries were even worse.
The team announced that fullback Roosevelt Nix and receiver/returner Ryan Switzer have been placed on injured reserve. The move will keep them out for the rest of the regular season. Once the game started, the Steelers lost running back James Conner, receivers JuJu Smith-Schuster and Diontae Johnson, outside linebacker Ola Adeniyi and cornerback Artie Burns to injuries — all in the first half — none of whom returned.
Conner re-aggravated the shoulder injury that sidelined him the past two games, Smith-Schuster sustained a concussion after being hit helmet-to-helmet by two Browns defenders while he tried to make a catch and Johnson lay on the field motionless in a similar scene after defensive back Damarious Randall ear-holed him on an incomplete pass. Adeniyi (concussion) and Burns (knee) went down on special teams.
Conner had 10 yards on five carries, Smith-Schuster 21 yards on two catches and Johnson 17 yards on two grabs before they exited.
Randall was ejected for his hit on Johnson, in addition to being flagged for unnecessary roughness against a defenseless receiver. Johnson was bleeding from his right ear as he was taken under the medical tent on the sideline.
Diontae Johnson bleeding out of his ear. Easy ejection on a dirty hit. pic.twitter.com/W0njmYWD6Z
— Will Brinson (@WillBrinson) November 15, 2019
The Browns, too, weren't safe from the injury bug playing their second game in five days. Safety Morgan Burnett, who spent last season with the Steelers, left the game with an achilles injury and did not return. Burnett was having a big night, too, with five tackles, one for a loss, two passes defended and an interception.
As for those who are done for the year, Nix had played in just three games this season because of a nagging knee injury. Switzer, meanwhile, had been busy on special teams but had to leave the win against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday with a back injury, one week after a rib injury against Indianapolis.
Tevin Jones was promoted from the practice squad to replace Switzer. Jones is a 6-foot-2, 225-pound wideout who spent all of last year and this year in the organization but had never been on the 53-man roster. A college standout at Memphis, Jones used his NFL debut to make his first NFL catch, on a 16-yard completion from Mason Rudolph in the second quarter.
Outside linebacker Jayrone Elliott assumes Nix’s spot on the roster, at least for now. He was signed by the team Thursday, two weeks after it released him on Halloween. He has appeared in 42 NFL games, registering 48 tackles and four sacks in four seasons with Dallas and Green Bay. Elliott had already played in four games for the Steelers this year, against San Francisco, Cincinnati, Baltimore and Miami. Elliott played on special teams and as a sub on defense Thursday.
Switzer finishes his season with eight catches for 27 yards on 11 targets, most of which came in the season opener at New England. Nix had two receptions for 4 yards and played in just three games, against the Patriots, Dolphins and Colts. Switzer is under contract for one more season and Nix two.
Inactives report
Steelers cornerback Joe Haden, who was a late addition to the injury report Wednesday due to an illness, was active and played Thursday night against the Browns, his former team.
It was a bit of welcome news for the Steelers, who won’t have any starters missing from their surging defense that is coming off a dominating performance in a 17-12 victory against the Rams.
The Steelers were without reserve outside linebacker and special teams player Anthony Chickillo, who will miss the game due to injured ribs. He had been listed as questionable.
The Steelers deactivated quarterback Paxton Lynch, running back Benny Snell, cornerback Justin Layne, offensive lineman Chuks Okorafor, defensive lineman L.T. Walton and tight end Zach Gentry.
The Browns deactivated offensive linemen Drew Forbes and Kendall Lamm, defensive lineman Bryan Cox, receiver Taywan Taylor, defensive backs Eric Murray and Robert Jackson, and defensive end Olivier Vernon.
Before the game, the Browns also released troubled wide receiver Antonio Callaway, a fourth-round pick last year. Callaway was suspended for the first four games of the season for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy, and is facing a 10-game suspension for another violation.
A healthy scratch last week, Callaway had already been in the dog house for reportedly being late to games and meetings.
Road Ben’
For the first time since his season-ending elbow surgery, Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was on the sideline for an away game. The Steelers hadn't played on the road since facing the Chargers in Week 6, and their first trip since the injury — at San Francisco — was just one week removed from the Seattle game when he got hurt.
Quick hits
With Switzer out, fourth-string running back Tony Brooks-James returned the opening kickoff, gaining 16 yards. ... Vince Williams started over Mark Barron at inside linebacker in the Steelers’ base 3-4 defense; it was the fifth start of the season for Williams and his first since the Dolphins game. ... Baker Mayfield’s first pass attempt of the game was, technically, completed to right guard Wyatt Teller — who caught it off a deflection by defensive tackle Cam Heyward — for minus-5 yards. ... Former Browns defensive lineman Phil Taylor was shown on the scoreboard to pump up the crowd in the first quarter, and after leading a chant, he yelled “[expletive] Pittsburgh!”
Adam Bittner contributed. Brian Batko: bbatko@post-gazette.com and Twitter @BrianBatko; Ray Fittipaldo: rfittipaldo@post-gazette.com and Twitter @rayfitt1.
First Published: November 15, 2019, 12:11 a.m.
Updated: November 15, 2019, 1:32 a.m.
